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Ma Rainey - Mother of the Blues
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Ma Rainey - Mother of the Blues

Facts

Mother of the Blues
Music Price: $28.98
As of Dec 1 13:19 EST (details)

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Artist(s)Ma Rainey
StudioJsp Records
Release DateJuly 17, 2007
UPC Code788065779320
Buy this item$28.98 at Amazon.com
As of Dec 1 13:19 EST (details)
5 Audio CD, Usually ships in 9 to 13 days,
 

Tracks

Disc 1
  1. Bad Luck Blues
  2. Bo-Weavil Blues, Pt. 1
  3. Bo-Weavil Blues, Pt. 2
  4. Barrel House Blues
  5. Those All Night Long Blues, Pt. 1
  6. Those All Night Long Blues, Pt. 2
  7. Moonshine Blues
  8. Last Minute Blues
  9. Southern Blues
  10. Walking Blues
  11. Lost Wondering Blues
  12. Dream Blues
  13. Honey Where You Been So Long
  14. Ya Da Do, Pt. 2
  15. Ya Da Do, Pt. 3
  16. Those Dogs of Mine
  17. Lucky Rock Blues
  18. South Bound Blues
  19. Lawd Send Me a Man Blues
  20. Ma Rainey's Mystery Record
Disc 2
  1. Shave 'Em Dry Blues
  2. Farewell Daddy Blues
  3. Booze and Blues
  4. Toad Frog Blues
  5. Jealous Hearted Blues
  6. See See Rider Blues, Pt. 1
  7. See See Rider Blues, Pt. 2
  8. Jelly Bean Blues
  9. Countin' the Blues, Pt. 1
  10. Countin the Blues, Pt. 2
  11. Cell Bound Blues
  12. Army Camp Harmony Blues, Pt. 1
  13. Army Camp Harmony Blues, Pt. 2
  14. Explaining the Blues, Pt. 1
  15. Explaining the Blues, Pt. 2
  16. Louisiana Hoo-Doo Blues
  17. Goodbye Dady Blues
  18. Stormy Sea Blues
  19. Rough and Tumble Blues
  20. Night Time Blues, Pt. 1
  21. Night Time Blues, Pt. 2
  22. Levee Camp Moan
  23. Four Day Honorary Scat, Pt. 1
  24. Four Day Honorary Scat, Pt. 2
  25. Memphis Bound Blues
Disc 3
  1. Slave to the Blues
  2. Yonder Comes the Blues
  3. Titanic Man Blues, Pt. 1
  4. Titanic Man Blues, Pt. 2
  5. Chain Gang Blues
  6. Bessemer Bound Blues, Pt. 1
  7. Bessemer Bound Blues, Pt. 2
  8. Oh My Babe Blues
  9. Wring and Twisting Blues
  10. Stack O'Lee Blues
  11. Breaken Hearted Blues
  12. Jealousy Blues
  13. Seeking Blues, Pt. 1
  14. Seeking Blues, Pt. 2
  15. Mountain Jack Blues, Pt. 1
  16. Mountain Jack Blues, Pt. 3
  17. Down in the Basement
  18. Sissy Blues
  19. Broken Soul Blues
  20. Trust No Man
Disc 4
  1. Morning Hour Blues
  2. Weeping Woman Blues
  3. Soon This Morning
  4. Little Low Mama Blues
  5. Grievin' Hearted Blues
  6. Don't Fish in My Sea
  7. Big Boy Blues
  8. Blues Oh Blues
  9. Damper Down Blues
  10. Gone Dady Blues, Pt. 1
  11. Oh Papa Blues
  12. Misery Blues
  13. Dead Drunk Blues
  14. Slow Driving Moan
  15. Blues the World Forgot, Pt. 1
  16. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
  17. Blues the World Forgot, Pt. 2
  18. Hellish Rag
  19. Georgia Cake Walk
  20. New Bo Weavil Blues
  21. Moonshine Blues
  22. Ice Bag Papa
Disc 5
  1. Black Cat Hoot Owl Blues
  2. Log Camp Blues
  3. Hear Me Talking to You
  4. Hustlin' Blues
  5. Prove It to Me Blues
  6. Victim of the Blues
  7. Traveling Blues, Pt. 1
  8. Traveling Blues, Pt. 2
  9. Deep Moaning Blues, Pt. 1
  10. Deep Moaning Blues, Pt. 2
  11. Daddy Goodbye Blues
  12. Sleep Talking Blues, Pt. 1
  13. Sleep Talking Blues, Pt. 2
  14. Tough Luck Blues
  15. Blame It on the Blues
  16. Sweet Rough Man
  17. Runaway Blues
  18. Screech Owl Blues
  19. Black Dust Blues
  20. Leaving This Morning
  21. Black Eye Blues, Pt. 1
  22. Black Eye Blues, Pt. 2
  23. Ma and Pa Poorhouse Blues
  24. Big Feeling Blues

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User Reviews

Average user review: 5.0 (1 reviews)

rating: 5 QuoteOutstanding & Historical with (unavoidable) flaws on the soundQuote
Gertrude "Ma" Rainey was the Mother of the Blues. She was simply the best at what she did. These recordings are not just another blues compulation, they are a complete historical document. The value more than outweighs the flaws.

Pros:
1. The album has ALL of her songs (alternate takes added). This is a first time that I've ever seen a COMPLETE set.
2. The price is right. For 5 discs, you pay around 5 or 6 dollars a disc.
3. The Restoration and Remastering is the best that is currently available.

Cons:
1. Ma Rainey worked for Paramount Records (man how I wish she would have worked for Victor or Columbia). Paramount had great blues (Charlie Patton, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Son House, Skip James, etc.), but they had very sub-standard recording techniques, and cheap compounds in their shelac (remember, Paramount was owned by a furnature company). To top it off, they scrapped all the original pressings when they went out of business. Also, Ma Rainey was probably one of the most popular artists of her time (Ida Cox, Clara Smith, and Bessie (no relation to Clara) Smith being equally as popular). So the bottom line is, JSP had to obtain the best copies available of the recordings. Also, they had to determine how much noise reduction to use without ruining the ambiance of the music (as an amature recording engineer, I know that this process is not easy, and a lot of the deciding is by judgement call). Considering that JSP had very little (if anything) to work with, I can honestly say that this set is currently the best sounding complete set on the current market. However, you will get (original source) noise that goes from very little (eggs starting to fry in a skillet) to a lot (beginning of Mt. St. Hellen eruption). There are plenty of notes that state this (mainly covered on disc E insert). What I did was develop Paramount ears (these are ears that discard the excessive noise of a Paramount record - I developed this while listening to the Charlie Patton set). If you can't develop this technique, I'd suggest sticking with the Bessie Smith sets (but you'll miss a lot of good music), or going with the numerous greatest hits compilations of Ma Rainey (Shout Factory, Yazoo, and Millenium are all very good, but you'll still get noise).
2. This is a personal gripe, but I wish they would put the alternates on a second disc. This gripe does not justify a star reduction. Actually, with the proper programing, you can by pass the alternates.
3. As with all JSP releases, not much on notes, but at the price you pay (approx. 4 - 6 dollars / disc), you could buy a book (there is a bibliography on the right page of the disc E insert).

Conclusion:
The disc is a MUST HAVE for Blues Pioneer fans, and the best currntly available, and at this price, Paramount ears should be developed. July 17, 2007

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